Monday, December 15, 2014

Top ten posts 2014 (bonus)

I sometimes like to find leadership lessons in unusual places. Looking for leadership lessons through the lens of unexpected sources can be interesting and insightful. This year, I shared a few lessons that carry great leadership lessons, from an atypical perspective:

The AMC show Breaking Bad provides useful leadership lessons, if you look for them. I've chosen five of my favorite lessons: 1. Partner with others; be part of a team. 2. Make wise hiring decisions. 3. Be methodical in what you do. 4. Commit to your decisions. 5. Don't be afraid to take initiative.

Before he was governor of the 12th largest economy in the world (that's California, by the way), Arnold Schwarzenegger featured in Conan the Barbarian (1982) about a young man who overcomes adversity to become a notable presence in the world. And it is through this film that Schwarzenegger (as Conan) shares his three leadership lessons, in answer to the question "What is best in life?" (This post is from April 1, don't take it too seriously.)

In an "op-ed" article from August, we can learn about receiving feedback. Here are three lessons I inferred from the article: We don't have all the answers. We need to hear feedback from others. Feedback must be timely to be effective.

Don't let your meetings end up this way. With the increasing trend towards remote meetings, such as through Google Hangout or teleconferences, we need to find ways to keep our remote attendees engaged. Remote meetings shouldn't drift into "us v them" where those who are physically present in the room ignore those who are trying to participate via conference. What things can you learn about running a remote meeting successfully?